Sweet, Sweet Feliciano
by wanderlust-nation
Summary: Ludwig and Feliciano have been friends for years, Ludwig has had a crush on him for awhile but refused to admit it because he didn't want to mess up their friendship, and he was happy just being friends with him. One night, though, he feels like Feliciano might share his feelings. Gerita, high school AU, human names used, fluff and keeps getting fluffier. Stay tuned for updates!
1. Chapter 1

"Luddy," Feliciano dabs his best friend's hurt cheek with a cold, wet napkin. "You still need to practice with that smile. Otherwise, people are still going to think you're angry with them. And a happier tone of voice would help, too… Not that I think you deserved to be hit but I just want to help you."

Ludwig nods sadly. As harsh as Feliciano sounded to him, he was right. But he really couldn't control his angry-looking expressions on his face. "I understand, thanks Feli."

"No problem," Feliciano smiled brightly, causing Ludwig to do the same, back. "There's a pretty smile." He laughed. Ludwig blushed, not knowing how to take the compliment.

"Hey, Feli!" a voice called. "We're starting again, come play!"

"Okay!" Feliciano chirped back. "I'll see you after class, meet me at my car." Ludwig nodded as his friend ran off happily to the soccer field.

The two of them had been friends for about 4 years, since Feliciano had transferred from Italy. He was seated next to him in their homeroom, and Feliciano attempted day-by-day to get to know him and befriend him. Ludwig, not having any friends, took a while but eventually warmed up to him and they became really close since.

It wasn't until last year that Ludwig realized he was growing feelings towards the Italian boy. He was fine with the way things are, just being good friends, and didn't want to mess things up by admitting his honest, romantic feelings towards him. His kindness and love was enough for him, and he was happy that Feliciano was comfortable enough with hugging and sometimes he could sneak a cuddle out of him. Everything was perfectly fine.

After school, Ludwig threw his bag in the trunk of Feliciano's car and closed it. He walked to the side and got in the back, avoiding having to sit by Feliciano's brother, Lovino, who has never seemed to like him. Getting in, Lovino glanced at him disgusted for a second before turning back and skipping through songs on the radio.

Ludwig stayed quiet the whole trip while the brothers argued about what they were going to have for dinner. Upon arrival, Lovino turned around and looked over at Ludwig.

"You better stay away from my snack stash this time or-"

"Lovino! He's our guest! He can have what he likes!" Feliciano interrupted.

"I won't touch your food!" Ludwig promised, scared. Last time he was over, he had accidently taken a bag of chips that apparently was from Lovino's "snack stash." If Feliciano hadn't come in at the right time, he probably would have strangled him for it.

Ludwig hurriedly got his bag from the trunk and followed Feliciano into the house. The Vargas' home was huge, complete with a huge kitchen, fancy dining room, comfy living room, a game room, several bathrooms, and roomy bedrooms. Though, Feliciano and Ludwig usually hung out in his room, an upstairs room, playing games or surfing the internet.

They walked upstairs and into Feliciano's room. Feliciano throws his school bag onto the ground and jumps onto his bed. Ludwig joins him, making the smaller boy bounce up. He burst into laughter.

"You make me have almost a heart attack when you do that."

"Sorry," Ludwig stretches on the comfortable bed. "What new movies did you get?" They always have a movie marathon when Ludwig visited. Feliciano's family collects movies as a hobby.

"Oh! Oh!" Feliciano scampers upward and slips off the bed and towards his DVD collection. "I got like… Five new ones Wednesday! We can still watch some old ones though."

"It's your turn to choose." Ludwig got up and sat next to him. There were a couple of scary movies, one romance, an animated movie, and a comedy.

"I can't. I want to see all of these!" He started stacking them on his lap. "Okay, we'll watch the animated one first… Then a horror movie... and if we aren't asleep yet, the romance."

"Sounds good." Ludwig replied. Feliciano put the movies onto the TV stand and crawled onto his bed.

"Let's play some Team Fortress 2 or something." Feliciano says, reaching for his laptop.

"Okay!" Ludwig gets his laptop out of his bag.

For a while, the boys play games, but eventually get bored and settle on the bed next to each other and watch video or look at Tumblr posts.

"Wait, was that that baby bullet video again?" Feliciano asks as Ludwig scrolled through.

"Yeah, it was, that's why I skipped it," they both laugh. Ludwig scrolls through some pictures of food. Feliciano's stomach growls.

"I might just order pizza, like Lovino wanted." Feliciano says.

"Good enough for me. I'll start the movie." Ludwig slides off the bed and begins to set up the movie. He lies back down on the bed.

Feliciano walked back into the room a few minutes later. Turning off the light, he jumped onto the bed and onto his friend.

"No Luddy, this is my spot!" Feliciano tried pushing him to the side so Ludwig pushed back. They fondled around, pushing each other away, but Feliciano ended up laying across Ludwig's back. They stopped fighting and looked towards the screen.

The movie was kiddish and brightly colored. While Ludwig sat there and watched it, content with the impressive storyline and characters, Feliciano got into it, as usual. He would laugh loudly at the funny parts, even cheer on the characters sometimes. About 20 minutes in, the doorbell had rung and they paused the movie to get the pizza.

"I need to change so we can relax now and eat pizza!" Feliciano chirped excitedly while trying to pull off his shirt too fast and falling over. Respectfully, Ludwig looked away when Feliciano got dressed in front of him. He would feel guilty seeing Feliciano indecently and ogling, as much as he loved Feliciano and everything about him. Ludwig put on his sleeveless shirt and shorts and threw his clothes back in the bag while Feliciano finished putting on his usual pink undershirt. The boys settled down on the bed again with the pizza and Ludwig played the movie again.

"Feli, are you alright?" Ludwig asked him as the boy was sobbing. This was normal; he always got really into movies when they watched them. Ludwig feels it's needed to make sure he's okay when he does, even if it's a little silly.

Feliciano nodded and buried his head into Ludwig's shoulder and sobbed more. The credits started rolling, so Ludwig reached out for the remote. With Feliciano in the way, he couldn't quite get it. Looking down at his emotional friend, he couldn't just push him away. He cradled him onto his lap and grabbed remote, accidently hitting the power button.

The room went completely dark and silent when Feliciano let out a confused-sounding sob. Ludwig laughed a little. Feliciano giggled a little, moving to a more comfortable position onto Ludwig's lap. Even after he had stopped crying, Ludwig stayed holding onto him, enjoying the warmth.

"Do you still want to watch the horror movie next?" he asked.

"Mhm.." he muttered, getting up from his lap and turning on the light. Ludwig laid down again as Feliciano put in the movie. His mind began to wonder about him and Feliciano. Feliciano seemed to get more closer and touchy with him lately. He began to think about it as a romantic gesture, but quickly wiped it out of his mind. He and Feliciano were friends, Feli wouldn't have feelings for someone like him… Would he?

"Tickle, tickle!" Feliciano attacked Ludwig's side, taking advantage of him zoning out. Ludwig burst into agonizing laughs and went for Feliciano's stomach. The two ended up trying to grab each other's hands to stop the other from tickling. Lovino burst into the room, glaring angerly.

"Keep it quiet, you two! And get your nasty potato-peeling hands off my brother you dumb fuck!" Ludwig instantly withdrew his hands. "You better not touch my brother in anyway, _Ludwig_. Or you'll regret it!" Lovino spat out at him, disgusted. After Lovino left the room, Feliciano attacked Ludwig again, pushing him down onto the bed. Ludwig struggled to keep quiet.

"Feli, the movie's about the start." Ludwig says, trying to pull his friend off him.

"Oh right." Feliciano rolled off of him and grabbed onto his pillow. "I hope this one isn't too scary."

"It doesn't look too scary," Ludwig replied, getting comfortable.

45 minutes later.

"I can't look, I can't look!" Ludwig yells, hiding behind Feliciano. Feliciano continues to eat his popcorn, eyes intertwined with the screen. Ludwig peeks at the screen again, just to jump again and grab onto Feliciano again, accidently spilling his popcorn.

"There, there, Ludwig. It's only a movie." Feliciano tells him. Ludwig looks into his eyes and takes a deep breath. Feliciano looks back at the screen.

"Ahh!" Feliciano screams just as Ludwig does, again. He scrambles in his place and jumps onto Ludwig, burying his head into his into his shoulder. "I take it back! I take it back!" He cries, his voice muffled. Ludwig nuzzled down into the boy's soft hair, hiding his eyes from the screen.

The scene eventually changed into a calm one. Feliciano attempted to withdraw from Ludwig, but he was still being held on to. Feliciano simply positioned him to where he can watch the movie and be in Ludwig's arms.

Ludwig placed his chin on Feliciano's shoulder, being so close to him made him feel at pure bliss.

"Luddy, don't dose off!" Ludwig opened his eyes, jumping awake. Feliciano had his head turned towards him, his nose touching Ludwig's cheek. Ludwig can feel his heart beat fast and his cheeks redden. This would be a great opportunity to kiss him, he thought, but I shouldn't be thinking of doing that kind of things.

"What's wrong?" Feliciano asked. "Are you enjoying the movie?"

"Yes, Feli. I'm fine." Please turn back around, he thought.

"Okay," Feliciano giggled cutely, causing Ludwig's cheeks to blush even more.

After the movie was over, they settled on watching the romance and then going to sleep.

"I heard this one was a good one!" Feliciano said, pressing play.

"Yeah, it'll definitely help after that horror movie experience." Ludwig laughed.

"Hehe, you may look tough on the outside but you're a big softy on the inside, Luddy."Feliciano poked his stomach. "Ack, and you keep getting tougher." Ludwig lifted one arm up, acting like he was flexing his toned biceps. Feliciano did the same, giving him a playful frown.

"I wish I was tough like you." Feliciano says, touching Ludwig's arm.

"It's not the greatest thing in the world. People are afraid of me. You're small, cute and approachable." Ludwig choked out the last word, trying to cover up calling his friend cute. Feliciano didn't seem to mind, at least.

"But I want to be able to lift people up!" Feliciano says, trying to make his voice sound like Ludwig's. Ludwig picked his friend up but his sides and threw him carefully onto the bed. "Wee! Hehehe!" Feliciano burst into more adorable laughs. Ludwig crawled into his side of the bed and under the covers. Feliciano eventually crawled over Ludwig, taking his place and pressing play on the remote.

The movie started out just like any other romance movie, a boy and girl meet, but then it revealed so many plot twists. The girl ended up being his cousin, the boy's best friend was in love with him, a dog died for some reason, and suddenly the best friend was a time traveler and some of the extra character was him in disguise.

"I'm confused. How is this a romance?" Feliciano asked.

"I don't know. Maybe it has some in the end."

"I really hope so, I was really wanting to see some romance tonight."

If only I could show him some myself, Ludwig thought to himself and snickered out loud.

"Hey! You can't really judge me. You love romance movies."

"Yeah, sorry Feli. I just thought about something funny." Ludwig said, embarrassed.

"What were you thinking of?"

"Oh nothing… Hey, look! There's something!" Ludwig pointed to the screen as the main character and his best friend kissed.

"I expected that. It's always the best friend when it doesn't work out with the first love interest." Feliciano noted.

"Yeah, I guess that's true." Replied Ludwig.

"I like it more than the usual first come, first serve deal. Love after friendship is so cute!" Ludwig blushed furiously.

"It is." The people on the screen stopped kissing.

"That was my first kiss," said the best friend.

"I remember my first kiss," Feliciano said, giggling.

"Really? Who was it with?" Ludwig asked, feeling a little jealous.

"This girl named Emily. She was my first girlfriend." Feliciano said. "I was twelve."

"Um, cool. What happened to her?" Ludwig asked.

"She dumped me for Lovino,"

"Her loss," Ludwig told him.

"Totally," his friend laughed back.

After the movie ended, the two laid in bed and talked for a little bit about classes, girls, and Lovino's weird finger-fumbling habit that's obvious to everyone but himself.

"Ludwig, who was your first kiss?" Feliciano asked, out of the blue.

"Noone. I have never kissed anyone."

"What? You haven't?" Feliciano sounded shocked. "That's not bad but I'm surprised."

"Nope, never."

"Oh,"

"… Feliciano?"

"Yeah," the boys soft voice was music to Ludwig's ears. Ludwig closed his eyes and breathed slowly.

"What does a kiss… Feel like?" he asked him, trying to keep his voice from cracking.

"Hmm… A kiss feels different, depending on whom you're kissing. Some people have small lips, which is great for small little kisses. Others have bigger lips, which can get a little sloppy and scary sometimes. But the people who have the same size as your's are magical to kiss." The boy giggles.

Ludwig was silent, imagining how Feliciano's lips would feel. Soft maybe? They look soft. He certainly smelled nice, and was warm and comfortable to hold. The thought was nice, but Ludwig longed to know how it would truly feel.

"It's really hard to describe though, I'm really sorry I can't explain it well." Ludwig felt him move in his place. "Do you want me to show you?"

"What?" He asked, heart pounding.

"Do you want me to show you? Only if you want." Ludwig went quiet. "I'm sorry did I-"

"No, no. If you insist, then yes, I'd like you to show me." Ludwig rolled over and faced his friend, not sure what to think of this. It was too sudden… And perfect.

"Okay," Feliciano said, getting up. Ludwig did the same. He could barely make out Feliciano's outline in the darkness. He felt Feliciano's hand touch his waist. "First, you want to make sure your hands are in the right place."

"Alright," Ludwig shyly put his arms around his friend. They were close now, able to feel each other's breath. Ludwig tensed up.

"Are you nervous?" Feliciano asked, gently, rubbing his back a little.

"Yeah," Ludwig laughed a little.

"It's alright, we're best friends. You shouldn't be nervous." He was right, Ludwig thought, and I shouldn't screw this up by being scared.

"So," Feliciano whispered. "you always do the first slow and easy." He leaned over and softly touched his lips against Ludwig's. It was much more magical than he expected, his heart skipped a beat. Feliciano pulled back, still staying close. "But eventually you move your lips a little like this." He kissed Ludwig again; giving him lips a little movement. Ludwig didn't expect something like this, and he attempted to do the same back.

"Luddy, you're doing good," Feliciano whispered. Ludwig was glad it was dark enough in the room for Feliciano not to see him smiled big. Ludwig leaned over and kissed his friend again, enjoying the amazing feeling of his body melting from being with, holding, and kissing the boy he adored more than anything.

"Mmm," Feliciano mummered mid-kiss. After breaking the kiss, he heard Feliciano giggle. "Luddy, you're quiet," he said, worried sounding.

"Oh sorry… Thanks Feliciano." Ludwig tells him, trying to hide the fact that butterflies were fluttering in his stomach.

"You're welcome, Luddy." They laid back down, closer to each other. "I'm really tired, let's get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay," Ludwig whispered, closing his eyes, remembering Feliciano's little sound he made during the last kiss. He blushed, knowing it was definitely a sound of amusement. He began to wonder if he was able to maybe start a relationship with Feliciano and how fun and wonderful it would be. He opened one eye and glanced at his dozing friend, resting comfortably by his side. Maybe, just maybe, he thought, I could have a chance.

Feliciano moved uncomfortably and rolled over. Ludwig scooted up to him and wrapped his arms around him. Maybe he has feelings for me, too, he thought, feeling both nervous and happy. He closed his eyes and nuzzled Feliciano's soft, reddish-brown hair, giving him a tiny kiss on the forehead. Before dozing off completely, he felt Feliciano move his arms around him, embracing him.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thanks for all the lovely reviews! I'll be sure to work hard and finish this story and make it really lovely uwu I'll also try updating regularly! 3

Feliciano woke up the next morning tangled up in his sheets and turned at an odd angle as usual. He slowly stretched and rolled over to look at Ludwig, who was still sound asleep, arms outstretched towards him. This was rare; usually Ludwig woke up first and basically had to drag him out of bed so he wouldn't sleep until noon.

Feliciano wondered if he should wake him up or not, but he decided against it. Ludwig looked too comfortable in his sleep, it warmed Feliciano's heart. He sat up, combing back his messy, auburn hair and stretching his stiff arms.

The usual thought had come to his mind; Ludwig. He had been thinking over his feelings towards him. He adored him, of course, but lately, he feels like it's now more than that. Romantic feelings, maybe. The only people he would discuss crushes with are him and sometimes Lovino, so he was basically helpless when it came to having a crush on Ludwig, someone who Lovino hates. He's thought over it for weeks now. This morning, though, he was feeling much different about his feelings. He realized his denial stage was put to an end.

_I, Feliciano Vargas, has a crush on my best friend and I kissed him,_ he tells himself, t_wice, three times including him kissing me again afterwards. _He glances down at Ludwig and softly places his hand onto his. _Now, do I tell him?_

"Feli," Ludwig softly murmured in his sleep. Feliciano leaned down and kissed his head.

"Luddy," he whispers at him, giggling stupidly before sitting back up. Ludwig let out a heavy sigh and reached out towards Feliciano, grabbing his shirt. Feliciano untangled his legs out of the mess of sheets, and possibly Ludwig's legs, too, and lay by his friend. "Whatcha dreaming about?" Ludwig's smile and slight blush made it obvious he was dreaming about something nice. Feliciano carefully pulled the corner of his mouth into a smile. Feliciano grinned, thinking about how amazing cute Ludwig looks asleep. He felt like lying back down and joining him.

Ludwig smiles a big smile and mutters again. "I-I…" The smile surprised Feliciano. It was a really sincere smile.

"What is it, Ludwig?" Feliciano whispers to him, his sleep talk interested him. He leaned over to kiss Ludwig's cheek.

Slowly, Ludwig's eyes opened, looking both confused and dazed while they stared into Feliciano's eyes. His pupils were unusually large. "Feliciano," he said, blushing. Feliciano quickly shot up, letting go of Ludwig's hand.

"You're awake!" Feliciano cheered. Ludwig shakes his head, his expression transitioned into a confused one. He yawned loudly.

"How long have you been up, I'm usually up before you," Ludwig sits up and rubs his head.

"Not too long, I was actually about to go back to sleep," Feliciano leaned on Ludwig's knees, looking sleepily at him. Ludwig's heart raced; thinking about the kissing last night, he probably had just started a whole new type of friendship with Feliciano. He was sitting there, leaning on him, looking at him all softly. He had the sudden urge to kiss the boy again.

"I think we should go get some breakfast," he says, trying to avoid awkwardness.

"And I'm going to beat you to the kitchen this time," Ludwig almost forgot, they always raced to the kitchen. Feliciano hopped over Ludwig and went for the door, falling instead.

"Feli!" Ludwig yelled almost dramatically, quickly getting out of the bed.

"I'm okay, Luddy," Feliciano laughs, pulling on Ludwig's shoulder to get up, and almost falling again.

"Be careful, you clumsy little-" Feliciano already had pelted out the door. Ludwig sighs; he probably fell on purpose just to stall him. Ludwig carefully got up and grabbed his robe out of his bag. He followed Feliciano down to the kitchen, not bothering about racing anymore.

They get their usual bowls of cereal and sit down in the game room and watch TV. Feliciano's eyes were focused on the screen; Ludwig began to zone out, thinking about the night before and his dream. He dreamed of him and Feliciano, cuddling as they did the night before, and sharing an occasional kiss. What I would do to be able to experience that, he thinks to himself.

Feliciano's sudden laughter snaps him back into consciousness. He ended up lying down and dozing off. He rolled over onto his back and looked up towards the ceiling.

"Luddy," he looked up at Feliciano, who was looking down at him. "Are you okay?" Feliciano had noticed his unusual silence and constant thinking.

"Yeah," he groans in a hoarse voice. Feliciano puts his empty bowl on the side table. He slowly lies down by Ludwig, his head resting on his lower side. Ludwig smiles and shyly runs his fingers through Feliciano's hair. "I feel fine." He says, looking back at the TV.

Feliciano snuggles his cheek onto Ludwig's robe. "What are you thinking about so much?"

Ludwig thought for a minute and replied, "If it was something that important, I would have already told you." Feliciano looks up and moves up closer to him.

"Everything you have on your mind is important to me," Feliciano tells him with worry in his eyes. "And you've been silent and thinking all morning."

"Feliciano, it's nothing," Ludwig laughs a little. "Just trust me," He rolls over and holds onto his friend, looking down at him with endearment in his eyes. Feliciano moves up even closer to him and rests his head onto Ludwig's chest. He instantly snuggles him, nuzzling his soft, auburn hair. Feliciano's cheeks are a deep red.

Ludwig's mind races; _tell him now, right now. Maybe he already knows. We are cuddling right now, we did kiss three times, it should be obvious and I'll be making a fool of myself. Should I just kiss him again? What if he just rejects it?_ Ludwig sighs and fondles Feliciano's back and sides.

Feliciano, clearly, is feeling the same way. _Do I tell him now? Now seems almost perfect but I'm not sure if I'm ready. I should at least lay down a hint. He deserves to know._

"Luddy," Feliciano says again. "I feel a little different." _No going back now, I guess_, he tells himself, trying to hold back feelings of nervousness and regret.

"Different?" Ludwig asks, pressing his forehead onto Feliciano's head. _Maybe I could have just been blunter_, he thinks.

He laughs nervously. "It's really difficult to explain, I just, I don't know." Feliciano begins to panic.

"No, Feli, I think I know what you mean," he pulls him up to where they can face each other. "Please try to explain it more."

"Okay, well I woke up this morning and felt like I was in a whole different body. And I feel like we're both different. Maybe not just this morning, maybe for a little while." Feliciano touches Ludwig's cheek. "I feel like I need to laugh but also… I don't know." At this point, he was just leaking out his feelings as vaguely as possible. Ludwig reaches up and touches his cheek back, leaning closer to Feliciano.

"Feliciano, it's okay, do what you feel like you need to do," Ludwig whispers. Feliciano's panic calms down. _Maybe he gets it_, he thinks. They gaze at each other for a while in silence.

"Ludwig, how do you feel about me?" Feliciano asked. There was another pause.

"Well, you're my best and only close friend but I feel like you're all I need, really," Ludwig replies. "If that's what you're asking, I feel great about you."

Feliciano thinks for a minute. "I don't know how you'll take this," he mutters.

"What? What do you mean?" Ludwig panics.

"We're getting really close. Haven't you noticed?" Feliciano runs his fingers down Ludwig's side.

"Yes, I have Feliciano," Ludwig calms down under Feliciano's touches. He looks fondly into Feliciano's shining eyes.

"And I never felt so… Connected with anyone else,"

"M-Me neither," Ludwig feels tongue tied. He can't believe Feliciano would be the one to his feelings.

"And we… We…" Feliciano sniffles, his eyes began to water.

"Shh," Ludwig attempts to soothe him. Feliciano laughs and wipes his tears.

"I don't know why I'm crying, I'm really happy right now," he laughs more and sobs. He does know why he's crying.

"I know, I know," Ludwig whispers and tears up a little himself. He turns his head and pecks Feliciano's lips multiple times with his, gently stroking his back. Feliciano giggles and kisses him back.

"I might have a crush on you, Luddy," Feliciano whispers. "I took a long time to think over this and-" he starts. Ludwig quickly sits up.

"How long?" he asks, urgently.

"Well for weeks, is that bad?" Feliciano sits up, sounding worried.

"No, no," he laughs and takes one of Feliciano's hands. "I j-just," more tears raced down his cheeks. He smiled at Feliciano. "I… I really like you… And I have, for the longest time."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Feliciano asked, his eyes full of bliss.

"Because I was happy already, Feli, and I didn't want to mess that up, just in case." Feliciano moved up to him and nuzzled his nose with his.

"Really? Me too." They both take a moment and realize how obvious the other's feelings were, and how silly the whole situation is. At the same time, they hug each other. Ludwig lies back down on the couch, taking Feliciano with him. Feliciano pulls back from the hug.

"So, honey," he giggles.

"Yes, my sweet, sweet Feliciano?" Ludwig chuckles back.

"What do you want to do now?" Feliciano asks. "Now that we're finally together?"

Ludwig takes his boyfriend's hands and holds them near his chest. "Anything, everything."

"Want to kiss some more?" Feliciano rolls to Ludwig's side and snuggles to him.

"Well, of course." He turns and kisses Feliciano's precious lips. _Wow_, he thinks, _he was right; maybe having the same size lips as your partner's feels simply magical._


	3. Chapter 3

Ludwig sat in his seat in first period, going through a few drawings and notes Feliciano had left on his English spiral. Distracted, he almost didn't notice someone sit in the usually empty seat next to him.

"Hi," Ludwig looked up from his notebook and at the unfamiliar face. He had black hair, very dark brown eyes, definitely Japanese, and his expression was almost blank. Not used to being talked to be strangers, Ludwig was confused; he didn't know how to reply.

"Hello," he said shyly, trying to not pull a confused expression.

"I'm Kiku Honda, nice to meet you," the dark-haired boy said, not changing his empty expression.

"I'm Ludwig," Ludwig replied. "Are you new here?"

"Yes," Kiku stated. "I have a hard time making friends, I apologize. I'm very shy, I hope you don't mind."

"I see," Ludwig remarked, scratching his chin. "It's fine."

The two spoke all class period, about school, family, siblings and more. After warming up to each other, Kiku walked with Ludwig to his locker after class.

"The lockers are so much dirtier here than back home," Kiku remarked, scoffing a little.

"Yeah, perhaps," Ludwig laughed.

"Luddy!" Ludwig turned around and saw Feliciano making his way over to him. He gave him a big hug and kissed his cheek. "Did you see the drawings I left in your spiral?"

"Yes I did, they were very nice," Ludwig smiled warmly.

"Grazie," he looked over beside Ludwig. "Who's that?" Ludwig looked over at Kiku, almost forgetting he was still standing there.

"Oh! This is Kiku, he's new. Me and him tal-" Feliciano grabbed his face and kissed him.

"Luddy, I'm so proud of you!" Feliciano looked over at Kiku, smiling. "Nice to meet you, I'm Feliciano."

He nodded. "Ludwig has spoken of you; it's very nice to meet you,"

"Ah! I'll have to talk to you guys later; I have to get to class early." Feliciano kisses Ludwig on the cheek once more and runs off.

"Bye Feli!" Ludwig yelled after him before turning back to Kiku, who had a confused look on his face. "Uh, what's wrong?"

"Is that your lover?" Kiku asked.

"Uhh… Yeah, that's my boyfriend," Ludwig realized he never really spoke those words. It had been a couple weeks since him and Feliciano had gone steady. They didn't announce it to anyone, though the only people who have caught on at this point were some of Feliciano's friends, who kind have assumed there was something going on for a while. They had decided against telling Lovino about their relationship to avoid problems.

"Oh, that's nice. You know, you really light up when he's around,"

"Is that so?"

"Yes, now where are you going next?" Kiku asked, straightforwardly.

"Oh, uh, biology," Ludwig points to the room across the hall from them. Kiku looks down at his schedule.

"I have art," Kiku looks up from his paper. "Where is that?"

"Here, I'll show you,"

"No, we use forks," Feliciano pointed at the plastic fork on Kiku's tray, Kiku only looked at it with a questioning expression.

"So you're telling me there's absolutely no chop sticks available?" he asked, picking it up.

"No, but forks are very easy to use!"

"But I'll be stabbing my food," Kiku whined.

"Now that you put it that way, yeah," Ludwig intervened, taking a bite of his chicken. "Just eat your food already,"

"Luddy, don't be harsh,"

"Sorry Feli,"

"Hey, Feliciano!" all three of them looked up to see a blond-haired American with huge, blue eyes. "I need to see your Algebra homework,"

"Not now, Alfred, we're busy," Ludwig snapped. Alfred comes to their table almost every day and copies down any homework he didn't do from Feliciano. Feliciano didn't mind, of course, but Ludwig found him annoying.

"Of course you can!" Feliciano started to dig through his bag.

Alfred gives Ludwig a sharp grin; he turns and looks at Kiku. "Hey, you're new. My name is Alfred Jones."

"Hi, I'm Kiku, nice to meet you," Kiku gives him a bow.

"Wow, so what classes do you have?" Alfred sits down at the table.

"Oh here," Kiku hands over his schedule; Alfred takes it and looks over it.

"We have communication together," Alfred exclaimed. "We should sit together,"

"That sounds fun, Ludwig and Feliciano has that class, too. I'll be looking forward to that." Kiku murmured, Feliciano smiles and hands Alfred his homework.

_Oh joy_, Ludwig thinks to himself.

"Alfred, there you are," Arthur Kirkland sits down by Alfred. "I accidently took your book,"

"Oh there it is!" Alfred laughs, almost sounding nervous. "Thanks bud,"

"No problem," he stands up and walks off. Alfred sighs, the whole table went quiet.

"Who was that?" Kiku asked, breaking the silence.

"That was Arthur, my step-brother, sorta. You see, I'm adopted," Alfred began. "He's the birth son of my adoptive parents and they took me in about two years ago, and then my other brother just months ago."

"He didn't ask for your life stor-" Feliciano's hand went over Ludwig's mouth. Looking at Feliciano, he noticed something was wrong. Alfred had the same look in his eyes.

"Are you not close to him?" Kiku asked.

"No, not at all. Arthur always has something he needs to do, places he needs to be. I really look up to him, and I really want to get to know him, but he doesn't feel the same way." Alfred stopped writing and stared down at paper.

"I know how that is. He'll realize he should invest time into getting to know you some day, you'll see," Ludwig said, actually feeling a little sorry for him.

Alfred looked up at Ludwig and smiled. "Thanks man,"

"I have an older brother," Kiku muttered. "He lives in China."

"I have a brother, too!" Feliciano said.

"And sadly he lives here," Ludwig added.

"Luddy! That's mean!" Feliciano shook his arm.

"So is he!" Alfred and Kiku snickered.

"So, can you open your eyes all the way?" It was 7th period communications, Alfred had met Kiku a couple hours ago, and he decides to ask stupid, offensive questions.

"Can you close your mouth all the way?" Kiku responded sarcastically before Ludwig could butt in. The girls sitting nearby giggled, causing Kiku to blush. Alfred elbowed him, grinning.

"How was your first day here?" Feliciano asked him.

"Good so far, happy I made friends on the first day," Kiku replied.

"Friends are great," Feliciano chirped.

"Yo! We should show you around town sometime!" Alfred shouted.

"That sounds fun, you want to, Ludwig?" Feliciano asked, smiling up at Ludwig.

"Yeah sure, that sounds pretty fun," Ludwig responded, giving him a smile back. Feliciano hugged onto his arm.

"I'm glad," he said.

The next weekend, they planned to meet up in the plaza. Ludwig and Feliciano were the first ones there. They sat at the fountain, looking at the fish as they swam by. Ludwig began to daze a little.

"Ludwig," Ludwig looked up from the water. "I'm so happy." He leans over and kisses Feliciano's cheek.

"I am, too, Feli." Feliciano reached over and took hold of Ludwig's hand, making his cheeks flush.

"You're so amazing, Luddy, I don't think I can begin to explain it," Feliciano looked down at his legs. "I might just be left behind someday," Ludwig jolted his head up.

"Excuse me?" he looked at Feliciano. "There's no way I'll leave you behind, Feliciano, don't think like that,"

Feliciano looked up at him, smiling. "Do you really mean that?"

"Of course I do, what makes you think I'll-"

"Hey! You two are in public!" they turned around and saw Alfred and Kiku headed towards them.

"We were only holding hands, chill out," Ludwig snapped, getting up from the fountain. He noticed someone else was behind Alfred. "Who is…?"

"Oh this is Matthew, my younger brother. He didn't want to stay home alone so I brought him." Matthew shyly peered out from behind his brother.

"Hi,"

"Hello Matthew!" Feliciano greeted warmly. Ludwig reached a hand out and helped Feliciano up, hugging him tightly afterwards.

"So where to first?" Alfred asked, making a gagging sound at the couple.

"Wait," Kiku said, everyone else looked at him, confused.

"Wait on what?" Feliciano asked.

"Hey Arthur, over here," Kiku called, the blond-headed boy turned around and began to walk towards the four, I mean five, of them.

"Shit, Kiku, you invited Arthur? Why? How?!" Alfred grabbed Kiku's shoulders and shook him.

"I have art with him," Kiku explained. "He let me borrow a pencil, so I invited him."

"Shit shit shit shit," Alfred's cheeks went red.

"Alfred, what's the big deal?" Matthew asked, grabbing his brother's arm.

"Hello Kiku, friends, Matthew, Alfred, I didn't know you were going to be here," Arthur noted.

"I didn't know you were going to be here either," Alfred muttered.

"He invited me, we have art together,"

"Yeah," Alfred said, almost coldly.

"Let's go check out Main Street first," Feliciano interrupted.

"I was going to suggest that," Matthew chirped.

"Awesome! Let's go!" Feliciano pulls on Ludwig's arm and they head towards Main Street. As they walked, Ludwig felt Feliciano tilt his head onto his shoulder. He smiled and gave his head a small kiss. He then felt another head rest on his shoulder. He turned to see it was poor, distressed Alfred.

"I'm not giving you a kiss, get off me," Ludwig groaned.

AN: Thanks for reading! Sorry I was a little late with this one, I just haven't found good hours or motivation to write but I'm sure I'll write the next chapter up soon. This was a rather boring chapter to write, but it's important to the plot line. Sorry for the slight USUK insert, I swear I won't add too much of them. The next chapters after this would be more GerIta fluff, I promise, bear with me here.


	4. Chapter 4

Thankfully, things went from awkward and tension-y to enjoyable in no time. Main Street was a big part of their town; filled with a variety of different shops, a few restaurants, and a pretty display of gardens and even lights during nighttime. The place was usually crowded during summer months, but it was quiet during late fall.

Kiku almost stopped dead in his tracks, seeing it all.

"This is Main Street," Alfred told him. "Where you do you want to go first?"

"I don't know, I feel like I want to stare at this place a little longer," Kiku replied, his eyes filled with awe.

"Hey, hey! Let's go in here!" Feliciano points to an antique shop. "I like this place!" He frolicked over to the entrance, taking Ludwig with him, the rest followed after them.

"This place smells nice," Kiku noted, looking around. Feliciano picked up a big floppy hat and placed it on Kiku's head.

"Look how pretty you look," he said, laughing. Kiku took a big top hat and put it on Feliciano.

"All you need is a monocle and mustache!" Alfred chuckled. Arthur walked over and placed a princess crown on Alfred. Turning around to a mirror, he frowned. "I'm not a princess," he whined.

Matthew, with a big purple bow on the middle of his head, walked to Arthur holding a big royal crown. "Look what I found," he giggled shyly. Arthur smiled and leaned down a little so Matthew could put it on him.

"You all look so stupid," Ludwig laughed. Feliciano snuck up from behind and put a fluffy pompom hat on him.

"And now you do, too," Feliciano giggled, hugging Ludwig.

"Hey guys, look over there," Kiku called, getting a mixture of "huh" and "what" replies. In front of them was a guy with a camera. Before anyone can protest, a picture was taken. The man handed the camera to Kiku. "Thanks,"

"Woah, woah," Alfred exclaimed. "Please warn us better next time!"

"What does the picture look like, anyway?" Matthew asked. Kiku looked down at the camera and opened up the file. On the left side, there was Feliciano smiling, holding onto Ludwig, who had a confused look on his face. Next to them was Kiku, posing for the picture. On the other side were Arthur and Alfred with shocked expression, not expecting the picture, and Matthew smiling and halfway hidden behind Arthur.

"Not too bad," Feliciano chirped.

"I like it," Matthew uttered.

"I look ridiculous," Arthur sighed. Kiku put the camera down.

"I meant to warn you guys, but I forgot,"

"It's okay," Ludwig replied, taking off the hat. "Let's take some more." Playing around with more hats, masks and scarves, they took more pictures. That is, until the shop owner caught onto their shenanigans and kicked them out.

"You know, this reminds me of the time when Lovino got us blacklisted from a supermarket before," Feliciano exclaimed. "He attacked someone for taking the last frozen lasagna."

"Alfred once got us kicked out of shop on the boardwalk," Arthur laughed.

"That was a long time ago!" Alfred complained.

"That was last month," Matthew giggled, Alfred covered up the boy's mouth.

"Shh."

The next store they went into was a candy shop. Instead of staying together, everyone spread out, almost like they knew exactly what they were looking for in the first place. Ludwig and Feliciano went straight to the gummies, Matthew went for the lollipops, Arthur and Alfred went for chocolates and Kiku just stared around at everything, unsure.

After minutes of countless "ohs" and "ahs", they all met at the checkout counter with bags of their findings.

"I can't wait to get cavities!" Feliciano shouted.

"Feli, please brush your teeth." Ludwig pinches his boyfriend's cheek softly. "and don't eat yourself sick." Alfred makes gagging noises at them, Arthur punches his arm.

"I got a whole ass load of chocolates that I can't wait to eat in one whole night!" Alfred boasted.

"Hey, guys, look what I found," Matthew said quietly, walking over to them, followed by two other guys.

Looking up at them, Ludwig recognized one; Francis Bonnefoy. Like Arthur, he was a senior that went to their school. The other he didn't know; a very tall and intimidating-looking guy with a large nose, though Francis was very approachable and kind, this guy seemed sketchy. He was surprised to see them there, and around little, shy Matthew.

Arthur hissed something along the lines of "God damn it Matthew we came in here for candy not that guy,"

"Woah woah," Francis spoke up in his French accent. "Ivan isn't that bad,"

"Da, I even offered to pay for Matvey's candy after stepping on his foot," Ivan added.

"Psst, whatever," he grumbled.

"I found a lemon lollipop," Matthew interrupted, holding up a large, yellow lollipop. Feliciano looked closely at it.

"That looks pretty!" he said.

"Who are those guys?" Kiku asked.

"Oh, I'm Francis Bonnefoy." Francis smiled.

"I'm Ivan, nice to meet you," Ivan said softly.

"I'm Kiku,"

"Oh you must be new, there's this amazing restaurant you must try!" Francis exclaimed, Kiku shuffled awkwardly in place. "Here, let me pay for your stuff, too!"

After paying for their things, they left the shop. Francis was going on and on about the restaurants and food when Kiku lifted up his camera and snapped a picture of him. "Woah," he looked stunned for a minute, Ivan looked at the camera from over his shoulder. "Let me see that," Kiku handed him the camera. He gave it a good look.

"Very nice," Francis started taking pictures of Kiku, then of himself and Ivan, who gave the camera curious looks, smiling like a dork. They then got Matthew to join.

"Hey, hey," Alfred calls, posing on the fountain. "Take a picture of me like this!" Francis laughed and took a few shots. Ivan ran over and posed like he was about to push Alfred in. Alfred ran behind him and did the same; only he looked like he was sincerely trying to push Ivan into the fountain.

"Luddy, I'm getting a little cold," Feliciano pulled on Ludwig's sleeve; he took his attention off the others.

"Alright, come here," he pulled Feliciano into a big hug. Feliciano snuggled into his warm chest. _Snap, snap_. Ludwig looked up and saw Francis aiming the camera at them. "Hey—"

"You two are too cute," Francis took another picture. "Give the camera a nice kiss,"

"I don't think so," Ludwig grumbled.

"Oh, don't be shy, Luddy," Feliciano looked up from his chest.

"Yeah, don't be shy," Francis repeated. Ludwig looked down at Feliciano, questioningly. Feliciano gave him a small kiss on his chin.

"There we go," Francis smiled. "Now stand him up on your feet like you're dancing with him."

Ludwig's face turned red while Feliciano stepped up onto his shoes. "Feli, you don't have to do that,"

"But I want to," Feliciano smiled, Ludwig smiled back at him. He leaned over and kissed him gently.

"With more passion," Francis urged. Ludwig looked over at Francis to protest, but Feliciano wrapped his arms around his neck and gave him a long, harsh kiss.

"You two are cute," Matthew murmured.

"And kinda gross," Alfred complained. "Yuck!"

"Oh shut up, haven't you ever been in love?" Francis teased at him, making a kissy face.

"Oh, quiet," Arthur intervened. "You're so annoying,"

"Arthur, Arthur," Francis put his arm around him, grinning widely. "Why don't you just make me?" Everyone went quiet, except Ivan, who silently muttered "Oohhh…" Alfred walked over and hit Francis in the arm. Francis barely flinched at the hit, laughing a little bit.

"Or I can," Alfred said, frustrated. Francis let go of Arthur and planted a kiss on Alfred's forehead. Alfred's face flushed and instantly went silent.

"Okay, who's hungry?" Francis asked, walking away from Alfred and approaching Matthew and Ivan.

"Oh, I am," Matthew looked up at Francis, smiling. Francis patted his head.

"Has anyone seen Kiku?" Ludwig asked, looking around.

"Yeah, he's over there, looking at those flowers." Feliciano points to Kiku, who is kneeled down by a garden near a bench.

"Is he… Okay?" Ivan whispered.

"Yeah, maybe just a bit overwhelmed." Ludwig sighed.

**AN: I am so so so so so so so sorry I haven't updated in the longest time. I even meant to make this chapter longer but I think I might just save the rest for the next chapter. This chapter was meant to be more development of Ludwig's relationships with other people. **

**I don't like asking for reviews but I kinda want to know what you guys would like to happen next. I have ideas for the continuation of the story but I want some nice inspiration. Any head canons I could write? Want a certain character to have more parts? More interaction between specific characters? More USUK? Some FraCan or Ruscan or maybe Frussia? Hehehe**

**Tell me what you want! Thank you guys so much!**


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Hey guys, it's been awhile! Sorry for the sudden hiatus but I felt like I should write when I got out of my writer's block. I got sloppy when I forced myself to write and I didn't want to mess this fic up by doing that. I probably should have tried harder to get out of it, but thank you guys for patiently waiting. I'm going to pick up the pace with this fic and (hopefully) finish it by the end of summer. It's not going to be too long of one. There could be 4 more chapters at most left.

Thanks for reading and enjoy!

Ludwig got home late that night. Alfred had tried to convince him and Feliciano to stay the night but after the long day out, he decided to decline. He took Feliciano home, sneaking a good night kiss and then another before heading home himself. He quietly tip-toed through the house, trying not to wake up his father. His brother was still up, he wasn't awake enough to handle Gilbert, but at least his music was too loud for him to hear Ludwig walking by.

He lay on his bed, kicked off his shoes, and stared up at the ceiling. He was exhausted, but happy; very happy. He almost didn't realize he started to doze off.

_Bzzt. Bzzt. _Ludwig awoke with his phone vibrating in his pocket. He sat up and stretched his arms before checking it. A new email, from Kiku. Ludwig blinked, vaguely remembering giving his email address to Kiku so he could send him the pictures from their day out.

Ludwig took off his shirt and pants, turned out the light and slipped under the covers on his bed. He opened up the email. The first pictures were of them in the antique shop, then outside. A lot were pictures of Alfred goofing off. There were several pictures at the candy shop, mostly of candy. Then there were several selfies of Francis and Ivan. His smile turned into a frown when he saw Francis was making provocative gestures in the background in some of the pictures of him and Feliciano. Kiku managed to get a few good shots of them without Francis, at least.

The pictures taken at the restaurant were mainly blurry, with the exception of a few including one of Kiku, smiling with a drop of tomato sauce on the side of his mouth. Next were several pictures from the karaoke bar they went to. Feliciano had sung first, he would get off key sometimes, but Ludwig almost would call his performance perfect. He felt warmly thinking back at the moment. Kiku managed to capture the way he looked over at Ludwig while singing, and also how the two had gotten carried away with PDA afterwards. Ludwig blushed looking at the pictures, a little embarrassed.

Francis and Ivan had sung afterwards, Ludwig was in awe over Francis's voice. He sung like an angel; a beautiful, masculine French angel. Ivan sung up back-up vocals, almost perfecting their duet. After they had finished, people had asked for them to sing again, though Alfred wanted to take a turn. Ludwig, though he felt bad about it later, expected him to not do so well, but he proved him wrong. He had a good rhythm, even danced up on the stage. Arthur joined him half way through and stole the show. Alfred didn't seem to mind and sung with him.

There were a couple of group pictures of all of them, then the pictures from the quick trip to the nearby lake. They had a sand castle building contest; Kiku had won, with Francis and Alfred coming pretty close. Matthew neglected to finish his castle to help Ivan out with building his. Arthur couldn't seem to build one without it falling apart. Ludwig had to put his phone down for a minute after seeing the picture of Arthur with the angriest expression on his face, kneeling by a rather large pile of sand. Ludwig and Feliciano worked on one together, but it couldn't compare to Kiku's uniquely-styled castle, or Francis's moat he had made around his. Alfred made his impressively large, before Arthur decided to kick it down after Alfred teased him about his lack of building skills.

Kiku had taken a few pictures outside the marine museum before he had to turn his camera off to go inside. Feliciano tripped on the steps while walking up them and Ludwig went to help him up. Feliciano seemed to be focused on the skid marks on his hands instead of getting back up on his feet. Kiku had snapped the moment when he held Feli's hand and had two of his fingers on his other hand holding his head up. The two had gentle, loving eye contact with each other the moment their eyes met. At that moment, Ludwig was just happy Feliciano was okay, but the picture that was captured showed more than just that. Ludwig instantly saved it to his phone gallery.

At sunset, they took a quick trip into the lake. Kiku, Feliciano, and Ludwig all got on one boat, while Ivan, Francis, and Matthew got on another, and Arthur and Alfred on one of their own. Kiku took many pictures of the view while Feliciano and Ludwig cuddled in the back. Under the light of the sun setting, Ludwig could not help but kiss his lover passionately on the head and cheeks, fascinated with the way Feli giggled and the way his eyes shined happily. "Ludwig!" Feliciano laughed. "I love you so much," Ludwig repeated those words over and over in his mind; he didn't want to forget them, or the way Feliciano said them, or the way Feliciano looked at him. He wanted to cry out in bliss.

"I love you much more than you know, my sweet, sweet Feliciano Vargas." They embraced tightly. Ludwig had to wipe tears that were starting to pour out from his eyes. Kiku had captured that moment, too, of course. Ludwig told himself to thank him after he finished going through all the pictures.

Taking his eyes off Feliciano for a second, he looked over at Kiku, who was looking down at his camera. "Kiku!" Feliciano called. "Did you enjoy today?"

"Yes," Kiku smiled. Ludwig kissed Feliciano on his head once more. "I want to take one last picture before it gets too dark." He sat in between the two of them and held up the camera. Though, that wasn't the last picture. The three of them snuck pictures of the others, a few of Ivan trying to get close to Matthew, who was overwhelmed with the attention, blushing and hiding his face. Ivan was gentle, nuzzling close while talking to him. Francis apparently then demonstrated how Ivan was ticklish to Matthew. They both tickled the Russian, making him laugh loudly.

They heard distant yelling from Arthur and Alfred's boat coming from Arthur. Alfred seemed to be holding him back. They ended up tripping and falling backward into (thankfully) the boat instead of the lake. Upon getting back to the shore, Arthur didn't wait to grab Matthew and pull him away from Francis and Ivan. The boy waved bye at his friends before being taken away.

Ludwig saved the email and hit reply. He typed a quick message to Kiku, thanking him for the pictures and the great time, and sent it. He looked through his new text messages; one from Feli saying good night and a couple from Alfred, a text asking to hang out another time, which was sent to the others, too. He replied back to them, set his wallpaper to the picture of him and Feli on the boat, and threw his phone aside. He closed his eyes for a second before his door opened up.

"Lud," his older brother, Gilbert, stood in the doorway.

"Yes?" he squinted at the sudden light coming into his room. "Can I help you?"

His brother blinked for a second. "Not going to throw something at me this time? That's weird for you. Anyway, I was gonna ask what's up with your giggling. I don't think I've heard you make those noises," he paused. "You made those right, there isn't someone else in here?" he chuckled.

"No, Gilbert, it's alright, don't worry about it," he rubbed his eyes, almost laughing.

"You feelin' alright?" Gilbert teased. "You look happy, unusually happy."

"I feel fine, bruder, now please, go back to sleep."

"Alright, we'll talk later." His brother gave him one last smile before softly closing the door. Ludwig laid his head back down and passed out immediately.

He dreamed nice dreams that night, but the next morning felt like he was waking up into a much nicer dream, that was now his reality.

AN: I liked writing this chapter, I really did. The coming up chapters may get a little rough, though, prepare yourselves. ;3 Again, thank you so much for reading and the favorites and the reviews. You guys make me happy, okay? Oh and I'll try being much quicker with the next chapter. Have a good week, everybody!


	6. Chapter 6

A warning for emotional abuse and angst in this chapter.

Dearest readers, I'm so sorry. I planned a drop in the mood of this fic but I didn't expect it to end up like this and I feel bad that I didn't paste a warning in the first place on the summery. I really sugar coated the warning in the last chapter, too.

I am so sorry. Just remember, this fic WILL have a happy ending.

Thanks for reading. I love you guys.

* * *

_I never should have left my phone unattended, _Ludwig cursed at himself. He would never forget the way his dad barged into his room, one hand clutched into a fist, the other holding his phone. He had left it in the living room. He never just leaves it places like that. _Why_, he asked himself constantly, _why this one time?_

_I should have hidden the pictures; _Ludwig wiped his tears just for them to be replaced by more. As many times as he's been in trouble, he knew at that moment nothing he's said or done would be worse than this alone.

_I should have been more careful_, Ludwig's guilty conscious pounded against his heart. His dad was already hard on him, his mom getting involved made matters even worse. She took away his phone and laptop. All he had left was the notebooks Feliciano had written or drawn on. Ludwig hid them away, they only made him feel worse, and he didn't want his parents to find them and take them away either.

_I should have been honest with them from the start, _this was the first time in a while his dad had even acknowledged him. They were always busy, and Ludwig was always locked away in his room. Maybe he could have tried harder when it came to forming a relationship with his parents. Maybe he could have told them he was interested in a guy rather than keep it from them forever. He never even told him he was staying the night with him so often. They almost never noticed he was gone.

_I should have never admitted my feelings for him_, he thought as his parents' threats rung in his head. They wouldn't have approved before him and Feliciano had made things official. He laid his head down on his pillow. _Maybe they are right_, he cried to himself, _I am a mistake to begin with._

_I should have never fallen in love with him_, he said to himself before he finally fell asleep. He was to stay in his room and away from Feliciano.

"Ludwig? Feeling alright?" Gilbert softly knocked on his bedroom door. Ludwig carefully got up, feeling weak. His neck cramped from lying in the same position for hours. He had stayed home from school since the incident with their parents and only got up to use the bathroom or occasionally puke. He already missed three days of school, and he had no idea if he even wanted to go back.

"Yes," he choked out, _not really, I feel like I'm losing it._ It was a stupid question, Gilbert knew that.

"I'm coming in," Gilbert opened the door and walked in. He was instantly affected by the aura in the room. Ludwig's blinds were closed, the room was dark, and there was a disturbing vibe that came with it all. He's seen Ludwig go through plenty of things, but this almost tops the list. "I brought you some water." He set the bottle of water on Ludwig's nightstand.

"Thank you," his voice was hoarse and devoid of any emotion at all.

Gilbert sat down by him. The room was quiet for a while. Gilbert thought he might have been disturbing him at a bad time, though Ludwig really didn't mind. He was tired of being alone, and he was glad to see he cared. He picked up the water bottle and took a sip.

"What was his name?" Gilbert asked, looking at Ludwig. He almost added "if you don't mind me asking" to the question, but Ludwig stopped him.

"Feliciano Vargas," Ludwig answered, clearing his throat. _Did he just light up a little?_ Gilbert thought. "He's Italian, he loves to play soccer, cook, watch movies, and write all over other people's notebooks. Not that I minded." Though he looked down, Gilbert saw a small smile on his face. It only lasted a second. "His family is very nice and always let me come over. His brother, Lovino, isn't fond of me at all but it was a small price to pay. I've known him for 4 years and I fell in love with him about a year ago." Ludwig felt the need to cry again, but he distracted himself by fiddling with the bottle in his hands.

"I've never met anyone more amazing than him, Gilbert," Ludwig's voice shook. "I should have been more careful."

"Ludwig, you honestly believe you did this to yourself?" Gilbert interrupted him before he can ramble on with the harsh self-hate he contained, Ludwig went silent. "Well, do you?" his voice became assertive.

"But I did mess up," Ludwig answered. Gilbert sighed and looked him in the eyes.

"Did you want to be with Feliciano?"

"Yes, but-"

"Do you love him?"

"Yes but dad-"

"You were living your goddamn life, Ludwig. It doesn't matter if dad or mom had approved it, you were happy and not wronging anyone." Ludwig was sobbing again. "Look at me, mom and dad are _wrong_."

"But,"

"Shit, man, I watch them just pile blame on you without even flinching. And you take it in, you _believe_ them." Gilbert raised his voiced. He went silent and continued in a quieter tone. "You have for years, and it's really affected you, you know?"

"I…" Ludwig lost his thoughts. _They're my mom and dad. Our mom and dad. They can't! They shouldn't!_

"As strong as you are, you really let things get to you, huh? I'm sorry, Ludwig, I really am. But I really want you to stop trying to obey so much and start living your life again. You were better off that way," Gilbert's tone changed again. "Let's just chill…" He looked over at his brother, who was sobbing again. "How about you stop crying and tell me more about Feliciano?"

"W-What?" Ludwig replied, confused.

"You were in a better mood talking about em, so uh, do it again."

"Well," Ludwig took a deep breath and began to explain the movie nights and the sleepovers to Gilbert. The emptiness in his chest was forgotten by the time he got to the night him and Feliciano had kissed and how Feliciano had confessed his feelings for him. He told him about meeting Kiku, actually befriending Alfred, the day out with all of them and running into Francis and Ivan. The karaoke, the sand castles, the boat ride, everything. Gilbert listened closely, and when he finished talking, he just nodded.

"I think you need something to eat, I'll be back," Gilbert got up and walked to the door. "It'll all be okay, Ludwig, just remember that." He left the room, Ludwig was all alone again.

It was typical that it took a while for Gilbert to return with some soup and bread. "Eat up, we're going for a walk later," A walk was always a solution to Gilbert. Every time he was sad, Gilbert would try convincing him to take a walk with him, even when it was raining, like that particular night.

"Gilbert, it's raining," Ludwig explained, sitting up to eat.

"We have umbrellas," Gilbert replied. "Eat."

Gilbert came back in the room around 8, wearing his coat and holding two umbrellas. "Ludwig!" He turned on the light, waking up him up. "Let's go,"

"Gilbert it's late," Ludwig complain.

"I have flashlights, get up,"

"I'm tired,"

"You've slept all day, put on some decent smelling clothes,"

"It's raining!"

"And we're going for a walk," Gilbert pulled the covers off of him. Ludwig sighed, knowing he didn't have a choice. Gilbert's never been so forceful about these walks, it could be extremely important that he went. He felt nervous about it.

Gilbert dug out some clean clothes from his closet. "Hey, wear this!" he threw a green sweater at him. "No wait, this blue one looks better." The blue sweater joined the green one on Ludwig's lap. "It'll go better with… This jacket." The jacket landed right onto his face.

"Why does it matter?"

"I'm going to be honest, Ludwig, you look like absolute shit right now," Gilbert noted. "When was the last time you showered?"

"I-I don't remember," Ludwig turned away in embarrassment. "But it's not like anyone would be outside to see us in the weather anyway."

"Yeah okay, get dressed," Gilbert threw a pair of pants on the bed before exiting the room. "Hurry up."

"I will, I will," Ludwig got dressed and took a look in the mirror. _Gilbert was right_, he thought to himself,_ I do look like trash_. He had obvious bags under his eyes and his hair looked bushier than Arthur's. He ran his hands through his greasy blond locks, pushing them out of his face. _Oh well, good enough._

He slipped his jacket on and met Gilbert outside his bedroom. "Eh… Wait, hold on," Gilbert messed with his hair, brushing it different ways and not being satisfied with the results. "I should have gotten you to take a shower." He quit trying to fix Ludwig's hair and pulled out a bottle of cologne. He gave Ludwig a quick spray.

"You're taking me on a quick walk, not bringing me to meet the queen,"

"Of course, Ludwig, we don't have a queen here," Gilbert laughed and handed him an umbrella. "Let's go,"

Outside, the rain was falling gently, creating a rather relaxing pattern of noise. Ludwig was relieved that it wasn't raining heavily anymore. During the beginning of their walk, they didn't talk much. While walking by the convenience store, Gilbert stopped. "I need to get something, wait out here."

"But-" Ludwig began.

"We aren't talkin' about butts," Gilbert closed his umbrella. "Stay." Without another word, he walked into the building. Angry, Ludwig almost walked into the store anyway. It was wet and cold outside, why would he make him stay outside? He stepped closer to the door when he noticed a familiar face.

Standing a few yards away was someone he wouldn't have expected to see at all. "Francis," The blond man looked up at him.

"Ludwig, feeling alright tonight?" he began to approach Ludwig. _He's not going to ask where I've been? What happened?_

"Yes," He decided it was better to not to trouble him with his problems.

"Look," Francis' voice got suddenly serious, he leaned up to Ludwig. "I know,"

"Gil…. Gilbert told you?" Ludwig's heart pounded in his chest.

"Well, that too. I was talking about how it feels," Francis smiled warmly at him. "I haven't had the best parents for most of my life, but that's not important right now. What is important right now is you, and that's why I came out here. That's why your brother took you out here. "

"Francis," that's all he could choke out. The tears had started again, France gently took him in his arms.

"I once gave your brother this game he really wanted back in Elementary school. The look on his face was priceless. It was Nintendogs, by the way. But it made him happy, and it was a delightful sight. The way Alfred stares at Arthur and how most of us know except them puts a smile on my face. How Ivan awkwardly tries talking to their brother and how he shyly responds gets me out of bed in the morning sometimes." Ludwig pressed his face to Francis' shoulder and nodded.

"Have you seen the way Kiku smiled when you guys were around? It's almost hard to notice. But you know what the most beautiful thing I've ever witnessed is?" Ludwig pulled away from Francis and looked at him. He turned Ludwig around, facing him towards the sidewalk.

First, he noticed Antonio Carriedo; the tallest one out of the three standing on the other side of the parking lot, on the other side was Lovino… But in between them was Feliciano. Ludwig gasped, wondering if he was dreaming. Feliciano looked back at Ludwig with both worry and happiness.

Both ran to each other, wanting to forget the world around them. Ludwig had never hugged the boy tighter in his lifetime. He cried vocally, the deep weight of sadness that settled in his chest was no longer there.

Ludwig took in his scent, his presence, his voice as he went on about how much he was worried, and how happy he was. "At first I thought you were busy, but then you weren't at school, then I asked around. Kiku, Alfred, Arthur, Matthew, even Ivan and Francis were worried. I… I…" Feliciano began to cry so hard, his words were slurred.

"Ludwig, I love you. I knew your parents were bad. I didn't know this would have happened. I'm so sorry. I love you so much. I wish… I wish I can…" Feliciano cried.

"Feliciano… My…. Feliciano…" Ludwig murmured between sobs and kisses he was placing all over his head, cheeks and lips. The two had fallen onto the sidewalk. Crying, but then laughing. Smiling and kissing, forgetting about the others standing around, not noticing more had gathered around.

* * *

This hurt to write. One more chapter, though. Things will improve. There will be happiness.

Please feel free to point out any spelling/grammatical errors and give me tips on how I can improve my writing. Any other (constructive) thoughts are also VERY appreciated. 3


	7. Chapter 7

Ludwig vividly dreamed of their first argument. It was about a month after they started going steady and over text message. He wouldn't call it a fight; just a small disagreement, but Feliciano got tremendously upset over it. After they both cooled down and apologized, Feliciano called.

"Feliciano?" Ludwig asked after taking the call.

"I am so sorry!" Feli's voice was hoarse, Ludwig could hear him sobbing from the other line. "I am so stupid!"

"Feli," Ludwig took a deep breath. "It's alright, I-"

"No, it's not," Feliciano choked.

"Yes it is, I promise," Ludwig waited for another response but Feliciano didn't speak. "You are not stupid, Feliciano. This was really stupid argument but that doesn't make you stupid, too. I'm sorry, too, I already told you sorry but I'm even more sorry for making you cry," Ludwig could feel tears forming in his eyes while speaking and hearing his boyfriend's soft crying.

"Grazie, Lud," Feliciano answered back after a long pause.

"No problem, feeling better Feli? That's... That's what really matter now,"

"Ve,"

"You sure?"

"Ve,"

"I love you, Feli," He heard Feliciano's muffled laugh. "What's so funny?"

"You're very soft and sweet for someone so scary looking sometimes,"

"Looks don't always define someone,"

"I agree,"

"You're very strong and passionate for someone so flimsy looking sometimes,"

"What does that even mean?"

Ludwig shifted around under his blanket. "You're so strong emotionally and mentally. You can light up even the saddest people and bring out the best in anyone. If anyone would have been by my side all these years, I'm glad you're the one, even if you're one person compared to so many." Feliciano started to cry again. Ludwig wiped the tears in his eyes with his blanket. "I'll never regret meeting you,"

"I love you Ludwig," Feliciano whispered.

"I love you, too, Feliciano."

* * *

Ludwig awoke from the bright sunlight peeking through the blinds on the Vargas's guestroom's window. His hand still rested on the book he was reading in bed the night before. He set it on the bedside table and sat up.

He began to wonder why he dreamed of the phone call from weeks ago. So much has happened since then; Ludwig's parents finding out about them, a tough week of parting, and another week of reunion and Ludwig staying in the Vargas household.

Ludwig still couldn't believe he was living with Feliciano. It was actually Lovino who thought of the idea and had discussed it with Mr. and Mrs. Vargas before they met out in the rain that one night.

Ludwig nearly half-heartedly declined the offer, he didn't want to be more trouble to them, but Gilbert ended up convincing him. 'You need to get away from mom and dad right now,' he said. 'I'll take the blame,' He knew it was true, but he didn't want him to take the blame. After Ludwig finally agreed, Gilbert handed him his phone.

'It'll be okay, Ludwig, I promise.' And he was right; their parents were angry at first. He kept receiving phone calls and angry messages from them. They threatened to cut his phone off so he wasn't able to use it, find out where he was, and possibly send him to private school. Gilbert and Feliciano's family all told him to ignore the calls and messages. He left his phone off for three days and used Feliciano's to talk to Gilbert or sometimes Kiku or Alfred.

When he turned his phone back on, he looked through the messages and saw they progressively went from angry to worried. He left a quick voicemail to his mom telling her he was okay and turned his phone back off for the rest of the week.

This morning, he decided to turn it back on. Several message from his mom and dad were, of course, there. Several apologies, more pleas to come home, and a few 'I love you' messages here and there.

"Knock, knock!" Feliciano came into the room. "Good, you're up!" He slung himself onto the bed and hugged onto him tightly, separating Ludwig from his thoughts and his phone.

"How did you sleep, Feli?" Ludwig yawned, tiredly hugged him back and dropping his phone back on the nightstand by his book.

"Well," Feliciano answered, sitting back onto Ludwig's legs. "I got up an hour ago to make breakfast. You know what this means right?"

"Yes," Ludwig cleared his throat. "Lovino does the dishes."

Feliciano laughed. "No, you're on clean up duty today. Fratello is in charge of dinner!"

"Alright, alright," Ludwig kissed both his cheeks.

"Let's go eat," Feliciano hopped off the bed and reached out for him. Ludwig took his hand and dragged himself to his feet before giving his boyfriend a short kiss on the lips.

"Thank you, Feli," Ludwig told him.

"You're welcome," Feliciano looked up at him with his soft, golden eyes. Ludwig pressed his forehead against his.

"Really thanks for everything," Feliciano gave him another quick kiss. "I'll never regret fighting for you."

"I love you, Ludwig,"

"I love you, too, Feliciano,"

Before they left the room, Ludwig's phone went off.

One new text message: Gilbert Beilschmidt

_Guess who mom and dad accept now? I'll give you one guess. Congrats, it's you. Love you, bruder, hope to see you soon._

End.

* * *

Thank you. _Thank you_ for the support in writing this fic. It's one of my first and I hope it's good enough. Past the bluntness, I hope it was still appealing. Sadly, I wouldn't be writing the USUK side of this story, but I will continue the RusCan one (When the Snow Falls). I will be starting a Nordic 5 fanfiction (complete with DenNor and SuFin, also asexual!Iceland because why not) in possibly the same universe soon.

My Reviewers: I never find the words to personally reply to you guys but thank you for taking time and reviewing this. I even printed some up to put inside my locker, because they're so important to me and they keep me going. Is that weird? (Yeah)

Have a good day/night everyone!


End file.
